The Mellotron Group

From: Rick Blechta <rick@rickblechta.com>
Subject: Re: [newmellotrongroup] OT, but I think this is stunning!
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Date: Wednesday, March 17, 2010, 11:05 AM

On Mar 17, 2010, at 4:07 AM, Andy kinch wrote:

I used to not to take the Theromin very seriously. IMO it has been plagued with the "Bad Sci Fi" label for as long as it's been around.

But, this has changed my mind. There is a talent here that is quite amazing to listen to.

http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=w5VX3KEt8- E

Andy K

Incredibly good. And you're absolutely correct about it being treated poorly by soundtracks of the past. Same thing could have happened to the Ondes Martinot, except that some major composers wrote for it.

Thanks, Andy!

Rick

>
> Thanks Rick-
>  I noted your refernce to the Ondes Martinot, and looked it up. Found lots of references, both on Google and youtube. I hadn't heard of this instrument before. Truely fascinating, a synth ahead of its time.  The keyboard has lateral touch sensitivity which produces vibrato like a stringed instrument. Good voicing selections and volume/attack control. The "ring on a ribbon"  finger control is like a physical theremin connection. I'm not sure what the other devices shown in the pictures are, possibly a string controller and speakers. Attatched is a pix I downloaded.

> Â Â -Bruce D.

From: trawnajim <jimab@rogers.com>
Subject: [newmellotrongroup] Re: Ondes Martinot
To: newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, March 21, 2010, 9:05 AM

--- In newmellotrongroup@ yahoogroups. com, Bruce Daily <pocotron@.. .> wrote:
>
> Thanks Rick-
>  I noted your refernce to the Ondes Martinot, and looked it up. Found lots of references, both on Google and youtube. I hadn't heard of this instrument before. Truely fascinating, a synth ahead of its time.  The keyboard has lateral touch sensitivity which produces vibrato like a stringed instrument. Good voicing selections and volume/attack control. The "ring on a ribbon"  finger control is like a physical theremin connection. I'm not sure what the other devices shown in the pictures are, possibly a string controller and speakers. Attatched is a pix I downloaded.

> Â Â -Bruce D.

The other devices are various transducers. Each has a different timbre, as you can imagine. The one at the top does indeed have strings, which resonate at various frequencies. Below it is a regular loudspeaker, and the other one is a small gong.

I've seen these beasts played several times since the late '70s and delight in it always. I don't know if they still exist (they don't have any web presence), but there used to be a quintet - yes, five of them! - called Ensemble d'Ondes de Montreal. I knew of the device earlier, from the Toronto Symphony recording on RCA of Messaien's Turangalila Symphony, but a performance by those folks was the first time I'd seen one in the wild.

It appears there are several youtube videos of the Ondes, so I'm sure there must be at least one that explains something of how they work.

Waving goodbye.

Jim Bailey

>
> --- In newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com, Bruce Daily <pocotron@...>
> wrote:
>>
>> Thanks Rick-
>> Â I noted your refernce to the Ondes Martinot, and looked it up.Â
>> Found lots of references, both on Google and youtube. I hadn't heard
>> of this instrument before. Truely fascinating, a synth ahead of its
>> time.  The keyboard has lateral touch sensitivity which
>> produces vibrato like a stringed instrument. Good voicing selections
>> and volume/attack control. The "ring on a ribbon"  finger control is
>> like a physical theremin connection. I'm not sure what the other
>> devices shown in the pictures are, possibly a string controller and
>> speakers. Attatched is a pix I downloaded.
>
>> Â Â -Bruce D.
>
> The other devices are various transducers. Each has a different timbre, as
> you can imagine. The one at the top does indeed have strings, which
> resonate at various frequencies. Below it is a regular loudspeaker, and
> the other one is a small gong.
>
> I've seen these beasts played several times since the late '70s and
> delight in it always. I don't know if they still exist (they don't have
> any web presence), but there used to be a quintet - yes, five of them! -
> called Ensemble d'Ondes de Montreal. I knew of the device earlier, from
> the Toronto Symphony recording on RCA of Messaien's Turangalila Symphony,
> but a performance by those folks was the first time I'd seen one in the
> wild.
>
> It appears there are several youtube videos of the Ondes, so I'm sure
> there must be at least one that explains something of how they work.
>
> Waving goodbye.
>
> Jim Bailey
>
>

On Sun, Mar 21, 2010 at 8:49 PM, Thomas C. Doncourt <tomdcour@amnh.org> wrote:

Radiohead used one on OK computer. They toured with a midicontroller based
on the Ondes martinot.

>
> --- In newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com, Bruce Daily <pocotron@...>
> wrote:
>>
>> Thanks Rick-
>> Â I noted your refernce to the Ondes Martinot, and looked it up.Â
>> Found lots of references, both on Google and youtube. I hadn't heard
>> of this instrument before. Truely fascinating, a synth ahead of its
>> time.  The keyboard has lateral touch sensitivity which
>> produces vibrato like a stringed instrument. Good voicing selections
>> and volume/attack control. The "ring on a ribbon"  finger control is
>> like a physical theremin connection. I'm not sure what the other
>> devices shown in the pictures are, possibly a string controller and
>> speakers. Attatched is a pix I downloaded.
>
>> Â Â -Bruce D.
>
> The other devices are various transducers. Each has a different timbre, as
> you can imagine. The one at the top does indeed have strings, which
> resonate at various frequencies. Below it is a regular loudspeaker, and
> the other one is a small gong.
>
> I've seen these beasts played several times since the late '70s and
> delight in it always. I don't know if they still exist (they don't have
> any web presence), but there used to be a quintet - yes, five of them! -
> called Ensemble d'Ondes de Montreal. I knew of the device earlier, from
> the Toronto Symphony recording on RCA of Messaien's Turangalila Symphony,
> but a performance by those folks was the first time I'd seen one in the
> wild.
>
> It appears there are several youtube videos of the Ondes, so I'm sure
> there must be at least one that explains something of how they work.
>
> Waving goodbye.
>
> Jim Bailey
>
>

--- In newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com, "Thomas C. Doncourt" <tomdcour@...> wrote:
>
>
> Radiohead used one on OK computer. They toured with a midicontroller based
> on the Ondes martinot.
> >
> > --- In newmellotrongroup@yahoogroups.com, Bruce Daily <pocotron@>
> > wrote:
> >>
> >> Thanks Rick-
> >> Â I noted your refernce to the Ondes Martinot, and looked it up.Â
> >> Found lots of references, both on Google and youtube. I hadn't heard
> >> of this instrument before. Truely fascinating, a synth ahead of its
> >> time.  The keyboard has lateral touch sensitivity which
> >> produces vibrato like a stringed instrument. Good voicing selections
> >> and volume/attack control. The "ring on a ribbon"  finger control is
> >> like a physical theremin connection. I'm not sure what the other
> >> devices shown in the pictures are, possibly a string controller and
> >> speakers. Attatched is a pix I downloaded.
> >
> >> Â Â -Bruce D.
> >
> > The other devices are various transducers. Each has a different timbre, as
> > you can imagine. The one at the top does indeed have strings, which
> > resonate at various frequencies. Below it is a regular loudspeaker, and
> > the other one is a small gong.
> >
> > I've seen these beasts played several times since the late '70s and
> > delight in it always. I don't know if they still exist (they don't have
> > any web presence), but there used to be a quintet - yes, five of them! -
> > called Ensemble d'Ondes de Montreal. I knew of the device earlier, from
> > the Toronto Symphony recording on RCA of Messaien's Turangalila Symphony,
> > but a performance by those folks was the first time I'd seen one in the
> > wild.
> >
> > It appears there are several youtube videos of the Ondes, so I'm sure
> > there must be at least one that explains something of how they work.
> >
> > Waving goodbye.
> >
> > Jim Bailey
> >
> >
>